Staff / Samantha M. Shal
Glass artist Nate Nardi adds colored glass chips to hot glass, which will create color and pattern on a finished bowl. The molten glass is about 2,100 degrees when it comes out of the furnace. Nardi will sell his work at the Sandy Springs Artsapalooza this weekend.

Staff / Samantha M. Shal
Glass artist Nate Nardi uses jacks, similar to tongs, to shape the opening of a bowl in his Decatur glassblowing studio. Nardi will sell his work at the Sandy Springs Artsapalooza this weekend.

Staff / Samantha M. Shal
Artist Nate Nardi adds hot glass to a project in progress, which will give the finished bowl a solid amber color along the lip. He will sell his work at the Sandy Springs Artsapalooza this weekend.

Staff / Samantha M. Shal
Glass artist Nate Nardi puts a glass bowl in the furnace, constantly rolling the rod between his hands, to keep the glass at the optimum temperature for shaping, which is between 900 and 1,200 degrees. If any part of the glass falls below 900 degrees, it can cool too quickly and crack, destroying the piece. Nardi will sell his work at the Sandy Springs Artsapalooza this weekend.

Staff / Samantha M. Shal
Artist Nate Nardi uses a wooden paddle to shape a piece of hand-blown glass that will become a large bowl. He will sell his work at the Sandy Springs Artsapalooza this weekend.

Staff / Samantha M. Shal
Nate Nardi hosts classes, birthday parties and other events which often include demonstrations in his Decatur glassblowing studio. Nardi also has a showroom which is open to the public, along with the studio. He will sell his work at the Sandy Springs Artsapalooza this weekend.

Sandy Springs Artsapalooza is returning this weekend and is bigger and better than ever, one of the organizers said.

Randall Fox, co-founder and development director of the Midtown-based Atlanta Foundation for Public Spaces, the organization hosting the third annual event, said he expects to have 150 artists and between 25,000 and 30,000 attendees there. Last year’s festival drew 125 artists and 22,000 people.

“It’s the only free arts festival in Sandy Springs,” Fox said. “We have an excellent selection of artists attending this event. [It] has gained in popularity not only with the community but with the artists. The community really wants this event. The nice thing about Sandy Springs is it really supports the arts.”

For the second straight year, Artsapalooza will take place on Lake Forrest Drive between Hammond Drive and Mount Vernon Highway.

“We have a ton of free parking, healthy choices for food with our food trucks and a ton of kids’ activities,” Fox said. “One of the things I like the most is the community has really been reaching out in support of this event and wants to know when it is. They’ve been really inquisitive about it. That makes me excited about it.”

Nate Nardi, a glassblowing artist who specializes in hot sculpting and glassblowing plus metal sculpting, has had his work displayed in the foundation’s other festivals but will be participating in Artsapalooza for the first time.

“I have been working with [foundation President] Patrick Dennis and the foundation for the third year of shows. … It’s great working with them,” said Nardi, a Decatur resident who has a studio there. “They’ve been a great help in promoting me as an artist, and they’ve put on some really nice art shows.”

The Clarkston native started glassblowing 12½ years ago while attending Jacksonville (Fla.) University.

“They happen to have a glassblowing program there,” the 33-year-old said. “From the first time I saw it, I was intrigued and took a class and have been doing it ever since. It’s a medium that works unlike almost any other material. It’s almost magic to see it work.”

Nardi said he hopes Artsapalooza will draw new fans to the glassblowing craft. He also teaches classes on the medium at his studio and said people at previous festivals have shown interest not only in the art itself but also in taking classes.

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